Heat forwards LeBron James and Udonis Haslem celebrate during their Game 2 victory Wednesday. / Robert Mayer, USA TODAY Sports

by Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY Sports

by Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY Sports

After losing Game 1 in a lackluster offensive and defensive effort, the Miami Heat crushed the Chicago Bulls 115-78 in Game 2 on Wednesday.

The Bulls did not handle the beating with grace. Referees made sure a physical contest between rivals didn't get out of control. Nine technical fouls were called, including five in the first half. But Chicago lost control early in the fourth quarter with the game out of control.

"We got sidetracked, and you can't do that. So we allowed frustration to carry over to our next play," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "You have to have poise under pressure. You come in here, you're not going to get calls. That's the way it is. That's reality. You can't get wrapped up in that stuff. You've got to stay focused on the task at hand."

The victory was the most lopsided in Heat playoff history and the worst loss in Bulls playoff history.

Bulls center Joakim Noah was ejected after his second technical foul with 10:13 remaining in the game. Bulls forward Taj Gibson objected and was ejected after consecutive technical fouls on the same deadball at 10:13.

"I just wanted to let the referee know how I felt about the game. I definitely deserved to get kicked out," Noah said. "We didn't play well. It's not the end of the world. It's 1-1. It's going to be a big Game 3 in Chicago."

Gibson said he just wanted an explanation of the play, "and it kind of went the other way. I should've conducted myself in a better way."

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra added, "I don't think it was necessarily out of hand other than emotions. I don't think it was physically out of hand. This is going to be a physical series. Nobody's trying to take it over the top. We have our game that we play that's tough but it's clean."

The series is tied 1-1, and Game 3 is Friday in Chicago (8 p.m. ET, ESPN).

"We were able to save this one, but we're still in the hole," Spoelstra said. "We know that. We're aware of that. What they needed to do was get one. It doesn't matter about the score tonight. We have to move on and get ready to go into the lion's den on Friday."

In full attack mode, Heat forward LeBron James, the 2012-13 NBA MVP, established the tone early and helped deliver what the Heat needed: a convincing victory.

James scored 19 points, all in the first half, and also had nine assists, five rebounds and three steals. Five other Heat players reached double figures in points: Ray Allen (21), Norris Cole (18), Dwyane Wade (15), Chris Bosh (13) and Mario Chalmers (11).

Composure was the key word for James. "We did a pretty good job of staying the course," he said. "We just came in with the mindset to be aggressive and play our game. With everything that was going on, we just tried to keep our composure."

For almost two days, Spoelstra lamented Miami's effort and ability to finish plays offensively and defensively.

"It's really not about those adjustments," Spoelstra said after the win. "It's a matter of winning the ball in the air, ball on the floor, all the toughness areas. Our guys came in with a stronger disposition tonight. ... We did a very poor job of finishing the other night. Not just quarter, but finishing possessions. â?¦ This game there was more of a concentration."

Miami responded, shooting 60.0% from the field, including 9-of-18 three-pointers.

"Our spacing is absolutely key when you play a defensive team like this," Spoelstra said. "You have to get to your spots and you have to get to them fast."

Miami also held the Bulls to 35.5% shooting.

Spoelstra entertained the idea of putting the 6-9 James -- a versatile defender -- on 5-9 Bulls guard Nate Robinson, who had 27 points and nine assists in Game 1. That wasn't necessary. Miami point guards Mario Chalmers and Norris Cole limited Robinson to 11 points on 3-of-10 shooting.

Chalmers and Cole also had solid all-around games. Chalmers had 11 points, four assists and four rebounds, and Cole had 18 points and six rebounds and two assists.

Miami increased the defensive pressure all around. Chicago swingman Jimmy Butler had just nine points, and forward Carlos Boozer had just eight points. Boozer has yet to generate meaningful offense against Miami. He is 6-of-20 in the series and has not reached double figures.

Miami's depth also wore on Chicago's lack of it. Still without guard Kirk Hinrich (bruised left calf) and forward Luol Deng (illness), the Bulls' reserves were outscored 55-25, and Miami outrebounded Chicago 41-28.

Thibodeau was unhappy with the defense, which gave up 20 fastbreak points and 56 points in the paint, carving up Chicago's interior defense. He said the Bulls needed to play better defense in Game 2, and the opposite happened.

In Game 1, James looked for his teammates early, scoring just two points in the first half. In Game 2, he took a different tact. He was aggressive from the start, making all six shots he took, and all of them were at the rim including two dunks, in the first quarter.

The Heat were never able to go on one of their devastating runs in Game 1. The Bulls always had an answer either with a basket or timeout to stop Miami's momentum.

That was not the case in Game 2. The Heat finished the first half with 13-3 run, taking a 55-41 lead into halftime, and started the third quarter with a 20-6 run, building a 75-47 lead. Miami's biggest lead reached 46 points â?? 104-58 â?? in the fourth quarter.

"You have to give them credit," Thibodeau said. "They were more aggressive, more determined. We were back on our heels. The game started OK. We didn't close out the first quarter the way we would have liked, and it snowballed from there."

What kind of impact can James have? He didn't score a point in the third quarter, yet Miami doubled its lead. James had five assists, three rebounds, one steal and was plus-15 in the third quarter.

"He is going to make the necessary plays, what it is and not necessarily what people think he should do. People think that he should dominate and score 40 every night. If the game calls for it, he can will. If it means he's going to make the right play by setting someone else up, or to another level and letting another guy make the play, he will."